Just Back

Quoted from petethemariner

I too worry about about JS  & AP saying ' we are not football people', for all the  laudable visions they have for the club, what matters most to fans is success on the pitch and if things go wrong, as they are at the moment, do they have the ruthlessness as ' not football people' to make  essential changes as and when needed?
I know they are both successful business men, but this is different, its the hope and expectation of thousands they have in their hands,not a business model.
This is not a diig at the  new owners, I am delighted they relieved us of the previous  dubious narcissist, I just hope they realise the frustration of the fans and act bravely, 'football people'
or not
UTM

They say that they are not football people because they are new to the football industry. Time will tell but I think they may have let Fleming go a bit too soon. It's alright leaving behind a Roladex of contacts but he's actually spoken to these contacts down the years and for people completely new to football, that would have been invaluable.

Mark Palmer was advising them too. When did they decide his advice was no longer required?

Quoted from mariner91

Others have said it but if LJL is our Plan B then god help us. And Plan A is pretty dreadful at the minute.

I’m quite staggered that we’ve got to December and LJL is still our second choice striker. Joel Grant must be seriously unfit.

A poor game for us and perhaps, more worrying given how well organised, structured and with a clear pattern of play that they had compared to our uncoordinated mess.

They also seemed 2 yards sharper than us across most of the pitch, certainly in midfield.

Coke, Fox and Clifton just not as skilful and sharp as many of the teams we have played in recent weeks and the movement off the ball and having the confidence and ability to take it and turn and play it out is really lacking without Hunt.

Absolutely Zero chance of play offs without a significant change in midfield personnel imho. The defence is solid and can do a job at this level. But right across the midfield today, we looked well off the pace and really didn’t string 5 passes together.

McAtee, Sousa and Hunt strengthen us a bit, but 4/5 players in midfield and up front needed and they must be much better than the level we have in there at the moment.

That’s not going to be easy to get, whether that is PH or someone else.

The someone else is a high risk choice as well - Bignot, Jolley and Holloway have shown that. Sometimes stick is as good as a twist.

Consoling myself with “this is a long term project”

It is and is likely to be in this league again next season.

UTM

Disappointing if predictable afternoon. Some criticism of the system on here tonight, however I can understand why we set up the way we did given available personnel and our form going into the game. There’s a real urgency to stop the rot, and under the circumstances a solid 0-0 draw against the league leaders would have been a decent result.

All that said, it was always a dangerous game to play when they’ve got the league’s top marksman up front. In a tight game of few chances, it felt inevitable that it would come down to a single, clinical moment and so it proved. We had equally good chances (not least Clifton’s header from a brilliant diagonal ball from Waterfall in the first half) but none of the ruthlessness that characterised our early season performances.

Tshimanga’s performance today reminded me of classic Lee Hughes. Do next to sod all, all game, look slightly disinterested, score a forgettable winner from 6 yards, incite the crowd a bit, get back on the bus with all 3 points. I didn’t think much to his overall play, but you know what he’s there to do - score goals. That’s what he does and that’s what he did. Those kind of players win games and win leagues, and we’re fundamentally lacking such a player right now.

Now, I don’t think our new owners would have had any intention of sacking Hurst this season. I think they saw him, rightly or wrongly, as someone who could help rebuild the club in the long-term, and within all foreseeable circumstances would be expected to keep his job regardless.

Trouble is, I don’t think anyone, literally anyone, saw this run of form coming. And make no mistake, 7 defeats in 8 games is absolutely job terminating form. For context, here’s the last 8 of other recent Town managers who were either sacked or left of their own accord under a cloud.

Holloway - W2 D1 L5
Jolley - W1 D2 L5
Slade - W0 D2 L6
Bignot - W3 D2 L3
Woods - W2 D4 L2
Newell - W3 D1 L4

Keep in mind that’s a pretty rotten bunch, most were glad to be seen the back of, and not one of them lost 7 of their last 8. Bignot’s sacking actually looks a little harsh when laid out like that, and even Newell’s record was better than I remembered it. They were still sacked, with much better recent records, in the league above this.

Neil Woods was sacked with Town in 9th having only lost 2 in 8. We’re currently 8th, but 10th on PPG.

Of course, this kind of analysis is a little basic and myopic. Slade hadnt scored a win in a daft amount of games, Bignot was a moron and Woods was clearly out of his depth. And, importantly, none of them went into those terminal runs top of the league. And that of course, alters the context - had we been sixth or seventh when this run began we’d be bottom third now and this conversation wouldn’t even be happening.

Losing today wasn’t a shock, I expected it. Like the Notts County game, the performance wasn’t shocking without being particularly good. But it’s no longer conjecture; it happened, we lost. For the 7th time in 8 games. In the National League. Regardless of league position, there’s only so long you can sustain form like this and remain employed - that’s football fact.

My view is that Hurst now has 4 games, max. He needs to have recorded a league win by the time the final whistle blows against King’s Lynn, and hope that we haven’t taken a spanking off Boreham Wood or Halifax in the meantime.

The idea that Halifax away could be more toxic than the last time we went there seemed a laughable idea just 6 or 7 weeks ago, but here we are. Things change quickly in football, and they have for us. They need to change quickly again for Paul Hurst.

Will we lose next 3 or 4?

Hurst has won more than 19 of his last 100 league games and drawn a fair few too.

I know he's struggling at the moment but let's not make out it's worse than it actually is, just to back up your argument for sacking him.

Nineteen wins out of a hundred is still pretty poor but makes an average of less than one win in ten sound better. It’s time he went.

Quoted from MuddyWaters

I’d have thought a reduction of 1500 in three games was pretty significant.

But still above what is budgeted for.

Quoted from Poojah

Disappointing if predictable afternoon. Some criticism of the system on here tonight, however I can understand why we set up the way we did given available personnel and our form going into the game. There’s a real urgency to stop the rot, and under the circumstances a solid 0-0 draw against the league leaders would have been a decent result.

All that said, it was always a dangerous game to play when they’ve got the league’s top marksman up front. In a tight game of few chances, it felt inevitable that it would come down to a single, clinical moment and so it proved. We had equally good chances (not least Clifton’s header from a brilliant diagonal ball from Waterfall in the first half) but none of the ruthlessness that characterised our early season performances.

Tshimanga’s performance today reminded me of classic Lee Hughes. Do next to sod all, all game, look slightly disinterested, score a forgettable winner from 6 yards, incite the crowd a bit, get back on the bus with all 3 points. I didn’t think much to his overall play, but you know what he’s there to do - score goals. That’s what he does and that’s what he did. Those kind of players win games and win leagues, and we’re fundamentally lacking such a player right now.

Now, I don’t think our new owners would have had any intention of sacking Hurst this season. I think they saw him, rightly or wrongly, as someone who could help rebuild the club in the long-term, and within all foreseeable circumstances would be expected to keep his job regardless.

Trouble is, I don’t think anyone, literally anyone, saw this run of form coming. And make no mistake, 7 defeats in 8 games is absolutely job terminating form. For context, here’s the last 8 of other recent Town managers who were either sacked or left of their own accord under a cloud.

Holloway - W2 D1 L5
Jolley - W1 D2 L5
Slade - W0 D2 L6
Bignot - W3 D2 L3
Woods - W2 D4 L2
Newell - W3 D1 L4

Keep in mind that’s a pretty rotten bunch, most were glad to be seen the back of, and not one of them lost 7 of their last 8. Bignot’s sacking actually looks a little harsh when laid out like that, and even Newell’s record was better than I remembered it. They were still sacked, with much better recent records, in the league above this.

Neil Woods was sacked with Town in 9th having only lost 2 in 8. We’re currently 8th, but 10th on PPG.

Of course, this kind of analysis is a little basic and myopic. Slade hadnt scored a win in a daft amount of games, Bignot was a moron and Woods was clearly out of his depth. And, importantly, none of them went into those terminal runs top of the league. And that of course, alters the context - had we been sixth or seventh when this run began we’d be bottom third now and this conversation wouldn’t even be happening.

Losing today wasn’t a shock, I expected it. Like the Notts County game, the performance wasn’t shocking without being particularly good. But it’s no longer conjecture; it happened, we lost. For the 7th time in 8 games. In the National League. Regardless of league position, there’s only so long you can sustain form like this and remain employed - that’s football fact.

My view is that Hurst now has 4 games, max. He needs to have recorded a league win by the time the final whistle blows against King’s Lynn, and hope that we haven’t taken a spanking off Boreham Wood or Halifax in the meantime.

The idea that Halifax away could be more toxic than the last time we went there seemed a laughable idea just 6 or 7 weeks ago, but here we are. Things change quickly in football, and they have for us. They need to change quickly again for Paul Hurst.

Unless (god forbid) we end up in a relegation battle this season, I think we need to stick with Hurst long-term. Id be happy with the playoffs this season, and even next season if it came to it. What I dont want to see is a constantly revolving door of subpar/alcoholic/city bankers/ has-beens that fluked it in the 00's but now relies on "his mates watching Sunday league in the southwest" to sign excrement player on 50-year contracts/  Complete nut jobs / Or a club legend being completely chucked under the bus.

Quoted from barralad

But still above what is budgeted for.

Oh good. We can look forward to some decent signings in Jan then. !!